James Vowles shares what he did during the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after Franco Colapinto’s crash

Follow us on Google Discover

Williams was the only team not classified at the end of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix after a dismal day at Interlagos.

The team suffered an early setback when Alex Albon threw away a potential front-row start in qualifying when he crashed at high speed heading into the Senna ‘S’ section.

Albon’s car was destroyed after the incident, leading Williams to withdraw him from the race for a second time this season after doing the same with Logan Sargeant earlier in the season.

While that was born out of lack of spare parts, this time the tight turnaround between qualifying and the race meant there was too much work to be done. It was also compounded by the fact that Franco Colapinto also crashed and caused significant damage to the right corner of his car.

The team managed to get Colapinto’s car ready for the race, but disaster struck 30 laps into it when the Argentine lost control in the tricky conditions and crashed on the pit straight. Team principal James Vowles said the weekend was ‘painful’ but felt it was important to see it through when speaking in the team’s official press release.

James Vowles watched the rest of Sao Paulo GP despite Williams double retirement

The double retirement for Williams meant they came away pointless on a weekend when Alpine managed to score a double podium.

The Enstone-based team leapfrogged Williams, RB, and Haas in the Constructors’ Championship and are now close to challenging Aston Martin in the final three races.

Vowles said he was ‘hurting’ after the race, especially considering Alpine’s result now drops them down to P9 ahead of pointless Sauber in the standings.

“We must go to every single one of these weekends now and deliver everything possible, whilst making sure we are still looking ahead towards 2025 and 2026 because that, as I’ve said all along, is where our goal is truly set. It’s all about getting the foundations right as we go towards that 26’ region,” said Vowles.

“That doesn’t make today any less painful. Far from it, I’m hurting right now. But actually, I wanted to watch that race to the finish to make sure I remember today because this isn’t what I want us to be feeling in the future.”

Franco Colapinto warned against Red Bull 2025 move

Colapinto emerged as a potential candidate for a seat in one of the Red Bull teams for 2025, as the team looks for options moving forward.

The Argentine has links to Sergio Perez’s sponsor Claro and would plug up the hole in the Latin American market for the team that the Mexican could leave behind.

READ MORE: Everything to know about Williams driver Franco Colapinto with praise to stats

Karun Chandhok has warned Colapinto that a move to Red Bull could be career-damaging, considering how cut-throat they can be with drivers.

As it stands, Williams would have him as their reserve driver for the 2025 season having also decided on Albon and Carlos Sainz as their full driver lineup.